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Gulf Of Mexico Oil Spill Update: Clean Up Could Last Until Fall

Above: The first signs of the Gulf Oil spill washed ashore in Pensacola, Florida just a few days ago. Photo: www.johnpaulking.net

After 48 days, there’s finally some good news to spread about the Gulf Of Mexico oil spill that followed the explosion on the Deepwater Horizon Oil rig… yet the sight of oil covered animals washing up dead on Gulf Coast beaches negates any kind of celebration.

Above: Pensacola pro surfer Sterling Spencer and Sarah Hoffert dodge gobs of oil while surfing in and around Pensacola.

This weekend, officials stated that they were able to siphon off 10,000 barrels of oil from the “well from hell” but they were unable to tell what percentage of the overall flow that number represented. According to Coast Guard Admiral Thad W. Allen, the spill will not be contained until relief wells can taper the flow of oil, and that could be, “well into the fall.”

The area of contamination has spread from central Louisiana to the middle of the Florida panhandle and fishing is closed across a wide swath of the Gulf of Mexico. Dolphins, birds, fish have been washing up dead across the region and the death toll only figures to grow as the oil gets closer to land.

Oil spill graph courtesy New York Times.

With hurricane season having just begun on June 1st, things could get a lot worse before it gets better and this pristine region regains it’s lost beauty.

In the meantime, I’d suggest a boycott of all BP owned companies like BP, Castor oil, ARCO, AM/PM, Amoco, and Gulf gas stations. I saw a guy with a Surfrider sticker pulling into an AM/PM station today and couldn’t help but think he didn’t realize he’s giving his money to the same company that just committed the worst crime against the environment in the history of the United States.